Benchmarking - Thermal

Describing the cooling equipment that comes with a case just doesn't cut it for us. We need to see how it actually performs to see if it is actually as effective as what the manufacturer's say it is. We have hand-picked a full system, which we believe is the current system setup for the average user.

PC Mid-Tower Test Bed

Chaintech VNF3-250
AMD Athlon64 3200+
OCZ PC3200 DDR x 2
Zalman CNPS7000 Copper
Seagate Barracuda 120GB SATA
ATI 9800XT
OCZ 520W PowerStream


Click to enlarge.

The thermal readings for the key components and points on the motherboard during operation were as follows. The numbers in each square represent the temperature of that particular section of the case in degrees celsius:


Nemesis
Click to enlarge.



Nemesis Elite
Click to enlarge.


It was obvious from the beginning that the Elite model would perform better in our thermal benchmarks, since it had three total 120mm fans whereas the steel model of the Nemesis had only two. The ambient air in the Elite model was 1-2 degrees cooler, on average compared to the steel model. And we can safely assume that the extra case fan made a difference, since it is proven that aluminum has no effect on thermal conditions.

Take a look at the temperature readings of each critical component in our test rig.


Nemesis
Click to enlarge.



Nemesis Elite
Click to enlarge.


Though not as drastic as the ambient air, the temperatures of each component were, on average, about 1 degree lower when testing the Elite model. Again, the extra case fan managed to help out a bit. The missing fan at the front of the steel case added a few degrees to the HDD during peak churning times as you can see from our results.

Installation Benchmarking - Sound
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  • semo - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    thanks Anand.
    to all ppl that keep saying "who buys these cases", well go back and read #7. i say keep reviewing these monstrosities (someone buys them) but then review 10 normal/enthusiast/any-no-gimmick cases.
  • piroroadkill - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    The worst bit is this case isn't all that bad, they just had to piss all over it by putting an ugly front on it... I don't get why any manufacturer would do that...
  • ElFenix - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    thanks anand!
  • danidentity - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    That is the ugliest POS I have ever seen. I stopped reading the second I saw the picture on the first page. Does anyone actually buy these things?
  • Locut0s - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    Thanks Anand!
  • Operandi - Sunday, February 6, 2005 - link

    Optimus Prime called....

    He wants his body armor back.
  • Dualboy24 - Saturday, February 5, 2005 - link

    Can you do nice case designs in the future... I would love to see reviews on more Lianli and antec cases... also what these two manufactures have in the budget line (-$100 cases)

    I think alof of people find these cases ugly... but Its nice that manufactures do make unique designs at least it keeps things fresh.
  • hoppa - Saturday, February 5, 2005 - link

    thank you for that, anand! i'm yet another that is sick of ugly, loud cases.
  • Rand - Saturday, February 5, 2005 - link

    You know, it's odd... but I think the 3 nicest looking cases I've seen reviewed on AT were all priced under $30.
    I'm not sure whether that makes me really cheap, or the fancier cases horrendously misdesigned.


    "but I'd rather review nothing than do any more of these."

    You know your get crappy parts for review when when you'd rather review nothing. :)
  • Gatak - Saturday, February 5, 2005 - link

    #13 and others...

    Will you buy and send a case that you like to see to AnanTech for review?

    If not, then how do you think they will ever be reviewed?

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